Steve Winwood

August 12, 1988 | DENNIS HUNT, Arts and entertainment reports from The Times, national and international news services and the nation's press

Steve Winwood--star of records, concerts and Michelob commercials--is king of the pop charts this week as well. His "Roll With It" album eased into the No. 1 spot on the Billboard magazine pop chart, matching the success of the title song, which has ruled the pop singles chart for four weeks. After a fast start, heavy-metal Cinderella has ground to a halt; its "Long Cold Winter" has stalled at No. 12.

Steve Winwood's career may have rebounded in 1986 with the hit-spawning "Back in the High Life" album, but the real comeback appears to be taking place on stage on his current tour, judging from his heated, highly musical performance Friday at the Pacific Amphitheatre (he also appeared Saturday at the Forum).

The stairway to classic-rock heaven extended straight into the Hollywood Bowl on Tuesday as '60s British rock heroes Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood closed their 14-city, three-week U.S. tour with a nearly 2 1/2 -hour excursion through the music they created, individually and collectively, three and four decades ago. The two Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees had plenty of material to draw from, starting with a generous sampling from their brief...

English music journalist Welch, a fan and apparent friend of Winwood's since the singer's days in the Spencer Davis Group a quarter-century ago, offers nary a discouraging word--nor an enlightening one--in this very authorized biography of the boy-wonder-cum-beer-pitchman who remains private as ever amid all the flattery. If Winwood offers a rare bit of self-criticism, the author pipes in, "I felt he was being harsh on his younger self."

***STEVE WINWOOD. "Roll With It." Virgin. In 1986, English singer Steve Winwood made "Back in the High Life," arguably the best R&B album by a white singer in the last five years--at least until George Michael surpassed it with his glorious "Faith." Winwood's new album, "Roll With it," is in the same lofty league as "Back in the High Life." The new one also features medium-tempo, funky R&B numbers and slow, tension-packed, gospel-like ballads.

Nearly 25 years after he hit the British pop music scene as a teen-age vocalist, Steve Winwood is recapturing the popularity of his youth with the help of Nashville and Memphis session men. The Grammy award-winning artist's new album and hit single of the same name, "Roll With It," hark back to his days in the mid-1960s with the rhythm and blues-styled Spencer Davis Group. The move to Tennessee, he says, gave him the chance to go back to his musical roots on the new album.

Most of this stylishly designed four-disc retrospective is devoted to Winwood's early years when he was a member of the Spencer Davis Group, Traffic and Blind Faith. Back then, Winwood--who writes, sings and plays keyboards--was capable of some exceptional music, mixing jazz, soul and rock with raw, electric blues. Unfortunately, Winwood didn't always live up to his potential. For every superb moment--such as the folkish "John Barleycorn Must Die" with Traffic in 1970, there was mediocrity.

The stairway to classic-rock heaven extended straight into the Hollywood Bowl on Tuesday as '60s British rock heroes Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood closed their 14-city, three-week U.S. tour with a nearly 2 1/2 -hour excursion through the music they created, individually and collectively, three and four decades ago. The two Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees had plenty of material to draw from, starting with a generous sampling from their brief...

Veteran British rocker Steve Winwood today received five Grammy Award nominations, topping the field, while Peter Gabriel, Paul Simon and jazzman Wynton Marsalis received four each. Barbra Streisand and Janet Jackson, sister of Michael, received three nominations each, along with Robert Palmer and Dionne Warwick. Winwood was nominated for record and album of the year for his "Higher Love" single and his "Back in the High Life" album. The awards will be announced Feb. 24.

After spending the '80s and '90s mostly making polished pop hits, Steve Winwood was ready to reconnect with the looser vibe of his '60s and '70s band Traffic. So he turned to a young band that had reminded him at least of Traffic's spirit, if not exactly its musical approach: the String Cheese Incident. But Winwood wasn't looking for artistic input from the Colorado jam band. He was looking for business direction -- and he liked what he heard.

"Junction Seven," the new album from Steve Winwood, offers the veteran English R&B-pop artist's familiar brand of upbeat, soul-inflected pop, but the hooks are slight and the production too slick. At the Roxy on Monday, Winwood and a stellar nine-piece band established an easy groove for the new songs that was far more immediate and agreeable, if still rather glossy at first.

Most of this stylishly designed four-disc retrospective is devoted to Winwood's early years when he was a member of the Spencer Davis Group, Traffic and Blind Faith. Back then, Winwood--who writes, sings and plays keyboards--was capable of some exceptional music, mixing jazz, soul and rock with raw, electric blues. Unfortunately, Winwood didn't always live up to his potential. For every superb moment--such as the folkish "John Barleycorn Must Die" with Traffic in 1970, there was mediocrity.

Steve Winwood and Jim Capaldi ran into an unexpected roadblock when they tried to resurrect Traffic after 20 years: They didn't have the rights to use the name of the rock band they founded. Chris Blackwell's Island Records U.K. owned the moniker. "When we were 19 or 20, he got us to sign a piece of paper, which we didn't believe existed," Winwood said. "He faxed copies to everyone."

Peter Gabriel, Madonna, Cindy Lauper, Steve Winwood and Paul Simon were among the artists nominated Tuesday for multiple awards in the fifth annual American Video Awards, to be given out Feb. 26 at the Scottish Rite Auditorium in Los Angeles. The show will be taped for broadcast as a two-hour television special sometime in March, according to Casey Kasem, who is scheduled to host the show.

Steve Winwood's career may have rebounded in 1986 with the hit-spawning "Back in the High Life" album, but the real comeback appears to be taking place on stage on his current tour, judging from his heated, highly musical performance Friday at the Pacific Amphitheatre (he also appeared Saturday at the Forum).

Don't let it be said that Steve Winwood can't follow his own advice. The veteran British rocker with the soulfully pleading voice hit it big in the late '80s with two platinum albums, "Back in the High Life" and "Roll With It." But "Refugee of the Heart," the first release of Winwood's fourth decade in the pop limelight, met a comparatively flat commercial response after its release last fall, even though it carried forward the seamless, polished-to-a-gleam R&B sound of those earlier hits.